New Mexico’s
fourth-graders scored dead last among the 50 states in vocabulary skills,
according to a report released this week from the National Assessment of
Educational Progress.

Only the District
of Columbia scored lower. Eighth-graders fared slightly
better, outscoring students in California, Mississippi, Hawaii, Louisiana and the District
of Columbia.

This is the first-ever vocabulary report
from NAEP, which is the only standardized test taken by a sample of students in
every state. That makes the results more comparable than other state
achievement tests, which vary significantly in difficulty. NAEP has released
reports on reading achievement for years, but a specific vocabulary section has
now been added to the test. T

he latest report, which includes results from
2011, is the first public look at how well students understand the meanings of
words.

KRQE - It's a bankroll just about anyone would be proud of. After last year's budget, New Mexico ended up with plenty left over. As of June, the state had cash balances of nearly 14 percent of its general fund budget, about $755 million. That's money that can cover revenue shortfalls in a pinch and helps the state look more attractive to bond rating agencies. Those reserves are far stronger than they were when Governor Susana Martinez took office, despite major state budget crunches. Some state lawmakers say this is a case of over-saving and that at least some of that money can be put to good use. Read More News New Mexico

At the New
Mexico Senate Democratic Party caucus on Sunday ,Pete Camposwas
selected as president pro tem of the chamber to replace Sen.Tim Jenningswho
lost his re-election bid back in November.

But while Campos — who’s served in
the state Senate for 21 years from Las Vegas — received the nod, it’s not clear
whether he has the requisite number of votes to automatically assume the pro
tem title when the upcoming 60-day legislative session starts next month.

The
Senate composition will be 25 Democrats and 17 Republicans, which means it
would take 22 Democrats voting as a bloc to keep Republicans from having any
say in the matter. If Campos
falls below 22 votes, it would take a coalition of Democrats and Republicans to
select a pro tem.

Plans for rounding up wild horses in
northern New Mexico
have changed.

The Bureau of Land Management says it's reprioritizing the horse
gathers based on drought conditions and the condition of the animals.

In New Mexico, trapping on
Jarita Mesa has been cancelled because conditions there aren't as bad as they
are in other areas. Fewer horses will be gathered from the JicarillaWildHorseTerritory
in New Mexico
because of limited holding space.

The BLM is nearing capacity at its holding
corrals and pastures. That means officials have less ability to remove animals
from overpopulated herds and drought-stricken rangeland.

The party says John Billingsley of LincolnCounty
was elected during Saturday's central committee meeting in Albuquerque. He will replace Monty Newman,
who has served as the party's top leader for the past two years.

An Alto
resident, Billingsley was previously the state party's first vice chairman. Billingsley
identifies himself as a longtime conservative and Republican activist.

In a
recent editorial, he acknowledged that this past Election Day was tough for
Republicans and that the party must return to recruiting candidates and sharing
its message first at the grass-roots level.

New
MexicoStateUniversity may use a search firm to hire the
next school president.

The board of regents chairman Mike Cheney says the
board has put out a request and received proposals from firms interested in
taking on the search but may not use them.

The board aims to make a decision on
whether to use a firm by Jan. 1. Cheney says the interview process would likely
run through the first half of the semester, in hopes of announcing a president
by spring graduation.

Former NMSU President Barbara Couture abruptly stepped
down last month following a mysteriously administrative leave. The school's
executive vice president and provost Wendy Wilkins also stepped down.